Nate Mcmillan

The Atlanta Hawks coaching staff must improve this summer.

For those thinking the Hawks might make a change to their leadership, Ressler quieted the noise when I asked about his confidence in both McMillan and Schlenk being the right leaders for the organization. “The simple answer is I think they are the right guys to lead this team going forward,” Ressler said. “I have enormous confidence in both Travis and Nate. I think I, as owner, Travis, the president of basketball operations, Nate, as head coach, all underperformed this year. I think if you asked any one of us — hopefully all of us — we would all agree that we all underperformed. We all thought we would be better, and we intend to be better. But if the question is do I have great confidence in their ability, the answer is yes.”

The Hawks took a step back this season. How much blame does McMillan deserve?

This was not how the Atlanta Hawks wanted their season to end. A 97-94 loss in Game 5 completed the gentleman’s sweep at the hands of the Miami Heat who got the closeout absent two of their top-three players in Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry. Much of the focus for the downfall has landed at the feet of Trae Young.

This time last year, Trae Young was flourishing in the role of the villain. His bravado coupled with the game to match, was capturing the attention of the basketball world. In just his third NBA season, Young was leading his team to the Eastern Conference finals – and rising to stardom in the process. However, this postseason couldn’t have gone worse for the Atlanta guard.

Early peaks, early exits. If this rings a familiar tune to you, then you probably have closely experienced the mixed bag that was the tenure of Nate McMillan as head coach of the Indiana Pacers. Two seasons have already gone by, and McMillan is now manning the sidelines for the...

The Atlanta Hawks saw their 2021-22 season come to an end at the hands of the Miami Heat on Tuesday. It took the Heat just five games to dispose of the Hawks, giving Miami its first playoff series win since the 2019-20 season. A few weeks ago, seemingly before Atlanta...

Lloyd Pierce was fired last season because he lost the locker room, and mainly Young. One source was asked after Tuesday’s Game 5 loss if McMillan had support in the locker room this season and if he felt like the players believed in their coach; he just laughed. As of a few days ago, McMillan’s job security was not in question. The manner in which the Hawks lost could change opinions, but that remains unclear right now.